Vol de la terre mort
by thoraxe357
Summary: We know that Harry Potter was chosen by fate to vanquish Riddle, right? Well... what if Fate was overruled? What if other forces of the cosmos chose another? click and see the flight of death grounded. H/Hr NT/OC
1. The new chosen one

_As a whole, Earth's human population usually would not notice an elephant in front of their face if the elephant was in Times Square. They wouldn't notice because, in their mind, there is no reason for an elephant to be in Times Square. Essentially, humans only see what they want to see._ -Thoraxe357

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Smoke billowed into the sky, mingling with the thickening storm clouds steadily forming between the earth and her sun. It rolled up as if the bowels of Hell had come forth, spewing its noxious contents in the hopes of tainting Heaven.

If there was actually an outsider within five hundred miles of the smoky pillar's base, they would have heard the screams of a dying village. Doomed innocents ran hither and yon, trying to escape their potential murderers. Men and women alike sent forth their agony-induced wails as nerves flared, sending signals of absolute pain to withering brains.

Streaks of vibrant green and sickly yellow light flashed through out the village, granting some blessed relief and extending the pain of others. The throwers of these lights found sadistic pleasure in the reverberating wails of the village.

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A boy of four was being dragged by his frantic mother in hopes of finding **some** kind of shelter from these evil men. The child, being incredibly intelligent for his age, did not resist his mother's tugs because he knew the danger they were in. He knew that these skull-faced men intended to kill them like they had done to so many of their neighbors, even if he didn't know the reason why.

As the pair rounded into a deserted alley, one of the men stepped from the shadows impeding their path. As they turned to run, another man blocked their escape. The boy heard evil laughs escape both of the hidden moths as two sticks were raised. Twin yellow beams erupted from the sticks, striking the boy and his mother simultaneously.

Pain beyond any of his imagining erupted along the boy's every nerve. His body began to quake violently as he valiantly held back the scream threatening to tear his throat to shreds. His mother, however, did not succeed and her scream filled the alley.

The boy looked at his mother with watering eyes. As he watched her writhe on the ground, the words his father spoke on his death bed passed through his mind.

"Son... your the... man now. I... know that you're... young, but... it's up to... you to pro...tect your mother. You have... to be strong for... her."

As he heard the words again, a new strength flooded his system, disintegrating the scream boiling just under the surface. To the men's shock, the boy crawled closer to his mother and, upon reaching her, placed her head in his lap and softly began to comfort her even through his own excruciating pain.

"Mommy its... hngh... gonna be okay. I'm here."

Unnoticed by the boy, both men gestured their sticks. The boy did notice, however, when the pain in his body seem to elevate to a level inconceivable by even the most high himself. His mother's screams increased in volume until he felt his eardrums rupture. The boy wrapped his hands around her chest as he felt the trickle of what he suspected was blood flow down both sides of his neck. He could feel her heart beating so fast it was almost a steady hum against his pain-wracked body.

The boy glanced at his mother. The men once again gestured and the child once again felt the pain increase. He felt his mother's heart increase to a pace higher than physically sustainable. Holding her tight he felt a dull thump resound through her chest. The screaming died away, taking his mother with it. As her body stilled, she gave her son one pain-free smile as her eyes closed for the last time.

The pain wracking the boy's body flared, then he went numb. With no apparent thought, he rose and stared into the suddenly terrified eyes of his assailants.

"Why?" was all he said as he advanced. "What did we ever do to warrant this attack? Why did you do this?"

A deep blue aura erupted into life around his small body. An indescribable energy boiled just under his skin, begging and pleading to be unleashed. He saw the men begin to spin on their heels and felt them seeping into some kind of invisible vortex. He gestured and the fleeing men were stopped by an immense force.

"**There is no escape**." came the boy's statements, laced with a strength not even witnessed in the men's heartless master. "**Today is the day the calls of the innocents will be answered**." The boy's voice resonated with an unearthly presence that sent a deep fear into the men's hearts.

The intense gaze shifted to his torturer. The man froze as if his whole body had locked up. His collegue looked on as the man's body began to shake violently. A gurgling scream erupted from his throat as he imploded.

As the fleshy mound that had once been a man fell to the ground, this... monster, this... devil in the form of a child turned his glowing blue eyes onto the remaining man. Seeing the supernatural gaze swivel to his horrified eyes, the second man fell to his knees.

"What... **are** you?"

"**I? I am the living embodiment of vengeance. I have been tasked with your destruction. I am the equal and opposite culmanation of the evil of you and your ilk. And I... am he who is going to kill you**."

With an unforseen burst of speed, the masked man tore away from the ground and out of the alley. His terrified screams tore through the village as the last innocent passed, calling the attention of his comrades. With deafening cracks, all of the assailants appeared around the man.

What is the meaning of this?" demanded one of the masked murderers, a strand of platinum blond hair slipping from his hood.

"H-h-hor-r-rrible... d-demon... dead." he looked toward the alley as blue light, glowing like an approaching spirit, began flooding the road. "By the Gods! Flee! Flee for your very lives!"

The rest turned to see a four-year- old child stride confidently from the alley, surrounded by an intense blue aura. He stopped as he became aware of the other men. Turning his eyes back to the original target, the child gave an evil smirk.

"**I thought I told you that there was no escape**." he stated with a small jerk of his hand. A beam of pure energy surged forth from his aura, straight toward the frantic man.

"NOOOOO!" he screamed as the beam struck and vaporized his body.

Silence reigned as the dust settled. Every one of the masked figures stood shocked at the power and ruthlessness they had just witnessed. Finally, gripping a pendant around his neck, the white-haired figure screamed at his men.

"Kill the brat!" resounded throughout the now silent village as he disappeared.

A volley of green lights surged forth from twenty sticks. To the continued shock of the men, every single light impacted onto the aura and was promptly absorbed. As each shot hit, the aura grew brighter and brighter. A lone tear slid down the glowing child's face as the distraught orphan slowly cracked through the visage of the cold killer.

As the arua brightened to a blinding level, the group heard one last thing, once more in a child's voice.

"W-why did you kill my mommy?"

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Hundreds of miles away, in a grand castle, several tiny glass instruments shattered and three people screamed in agony until two dropped into unconsciousness. The door to their chambers burst inwards and five figures hurriedly strolled in. They approached the one member of the sensitive trio that remained awake and inquired as to what they had felt.

"**Power**! **Power the likes of which has not been seen since Merlin himself. The second heir of magic has been awakened by the forces of death and balance. He has been tasked with the annihilation of the snake in God's garden**."

The five turned toward each other and, after gaining the location, vanished.

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Within the boundaries of Britain, a child of seven with shockingly pink hair woke up gasping.

"What was that...feeling?" she asked the darkness.

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Elsewhere, a man with unruly black hair cradled a child with identical hair was he screamed. The man looked up as an elegant woman with crimson locks and a worried expression strolled into the nursery.

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know, luv. He just won't stop crying. I've tried everything short of a silencing charm.

They both looked to the small child cradled in the man's arms as a glowing image of a lightning bolt appeared on his forehead. The bolt glowed brightly before breaking in half and fading away. Staring at each other, the same idea rolled from their tongues...

"Call Albus!"


	2. Diagon Alley

Pride will destroy all those ignorant enough to let it rule them. For who is the stronger man... he who feels that he needs to do everything by himself? Or he who knows his own limitations and accepts that he will require help from friends at some point? Only he who learns this lesson will truly live a life **worthy** of pride. -Thoraxe357

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Diagon Alley. Pinnacle of culture within the borders of British wizarding civilization. Usually, the alley always had a constant stream of people. The shops that lined the main road completed with their brazen displays and advertisements, doing their best to attract more potential business than the shop next door. Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes flashed with signs and small explosions as a flood of children raided its contents, trying to emulate the owners. Flourish and Blott's stood proud as the premier bookstore in wizarding England. At the head of the alley stood the always strong, if a little ominous, structure of the goblin-run magical bank, Gringotts. Yes... Diagon Alley... truly a marvel of society.

These days, however, only the triple W showed any signs of life. Many shops had closed and left. The once suffocating stream of people had dwindled to a pathetic trickle of desperate shoppers. The line of the street only boasted the proprietors of Hogwarts school supplies lately. Beside WWW, only Flortescue's ice cream parlor remained the non school-related shop open. Florean was adamant that the populace needed something to make them happy, so he steadfastly refused to close just because of Lord Voldemort.

There was the rub. Voldemort, aka Tom Marvollo Riddle (though few actually knew that aspect) had wizard Britain shitting themselves in fear. The people were afraid to sleep... to leave their homes... hell, afraid to say his fucking name! Riddle had already won the current war. He had just about everyone too afraid to do anything but quiver. If average Joe and Jane wizard had even half a spine or brain, they would all just grow a pair and stand up, Tommy-boy would fall.

"Fuckin' pathetic..." spat one of the few figures sitting at the ice cream parlor, partaking of a cup of vanilla ice cream. This man was an oddity, even among wizards. He wore a long dark blue duster over a black tactical vest and and black steel-toe work boots. His eyes were covered by solid blue wrap-around sunglasses, the reflective lenses covering the cold black eyes underneath. Across his chest were strapped what looked to be five miniature rifles of varying models and makes. Unseen to anyone, two modified 9mm H&Ks were strapped to his hips.

Putting down his empty ice cream cup he began to fiddle with two metal rings attached to the wrists of his fingerless gloves. The areas over his knuckles looked to have extra padding, but was really plates of solid steel, made incredibly flexible by his magic. Yes, for no matter how out of place Jaxom Trantic appeared to be, he was indeed a wizard.

As the eighteen year old gestured to Flortescue, he spared a thought for the people staring at him warily. These people were the living embodiment of baser human instincts. If something wasn't familiar, fear it. Jaxom, or Jax for short, shook his head in an exasperated way as Flortescue approached.

"How was it, Jax?" Flortescue was very fond of this young man. Almost everyday for the last two years, he had showed up to the parlor for a few cups of vanilla ice cream. After the first few months, he had given up trying to sell Jaxom any of his more fanciful concoctions and was happy to provide the strange young man with his vanilla fix. Seriously, the guy was absolutely obsessed with vanilla Ice cream.

"Delicious as always, oh master of frozen cream."

"Seeing as that was only your first cup, I thought you might want another." stated The ice cream maker, setting another cup and vanishing the empty one with his wand. However, just as Jaxom was about to take the first heavenly bite, an explosion rocked the alley followed closely by cacophony of screams. Looking up, both men saw a cloud of black smoke surrounded a glowing green skull like some tainted halo.

"Chongo-longo..." muttered Jaxom, recalling one of his favorite cartoons, "ruttin' pieces of shit just couldn't wait 'til I finished my ice cream. Keep this chilled for me, would ya Florean?"

"Of course..." replied the confused man.

Nodding, Jaxom rose from his seat and ran to the wall of the shop. He sprung up onto a table and, without missing a beat, launched himself to the roof. Without pause, Jaxom began leaping from roof to roof towards the other end of the street. Once he got to the wall that divided the wizard and muggle worlds. Dropping to one knee, he pulled a black bolt-action .308 rifle from his vest and enlarged it to the correct size.

"_Renth, can you give me a visual?"_

Twenty feet above the alley, what looked like a miniature dragon circled. This little creature was Renth, a fire lizard. Much was not known about these beings. It couldn't be found out if the predated their larger counterparts or vice versa. Some even speculated that they came from a distant planet, though that theory was generally ridiculed. Generally, fire lizards are though extinct these days. They're obviously not. They actually resided in deep forests to escape the people who would use them.

"_What exactly are you looking for, Jax?"_

"_The leader."_

Antonin Dolohov was a happy man. Come on, he was ordered to do what he loved. Sure, he was tortured by some snake-faced asshole who was clearly compensating for something but... whatever. He was constantly sent out into the world to instill fear by any means necessary. For Antonin, that meant the deaths and torture of innocents.

He was usually sent as a follower, not that he really cared as got to satiate his sadistic appetite. This time, however, the Dark Lord had granted him leadership of this raiding party. He was calling the shots during this attack on Diagon Alley. The pathetic little ants fled from the sheer veracity of the attacking Death Eaters under his sadistically gleaming eyes.

'Life is good.' was his last thought as his head exploded.

The silencing charm did its job on the .308's thick barrel as the hollow point fled the rifle and took refuge in the lead Death Eater's head. As chunks of skull and brain matter covered the other attackers, Jaxom stood and took off. He ran down one side of the alley along the roof line, every so often stopping and dropping DE's with well placed rounds. As he neared, he shrunk and stowed his rifle and pulled his pistols. Landing on the shop nearest to the crowd of killers, he surveyed the landing point on the ground that provided the best entrance.

Acquiring his target, Jaxom sped forward and leaped from the edge of the two story building. He landed tall on the street before the confused group. As soon as his feet touched the ground, rounds flew forth and embedded themselves within five members of the twenty-strong party. The remaining members stared in wonder between their dead comrades and the strange devices this brazen fool held. Finally, one DE stepped forward.

"Fool! Lay down your weapons!" He stared smugly through his mask, waiting for this impudent piece of filth to comply. His head jerked back, adorned with a new hole in between his eyes.

"Death Eaters..." growled the stranger, sinking into a combative crouch, "come and get them."

Suddenly, everyone erupted into motion. AKs flew left and right, splashing over an invisible barrier before they hit any innocents. Jaxom dove over the first rank of DEs and into their midst. He landed and rolled under a barrage of curses that struck more of the black-cloaked killers. He rolled up into a standing position and began squeezing the triggers. He reared back under a streak of green light leading to it strike a flanking Death Eater. He spun his head to spot the original caster. A quick shot ended him as Jaxom spun to the right of cruciartus, putting rounds in more Death Eaters. Soon, all that remained was Jaxom and one rookie muncher. Jax holstered his pistols and began to slowly advance on the terrified youth.

Ryan Tarmine stood horrified as senior Death Eaters fell around him. It just wasn't possible! How was **one** man causing as much damage to their ranks? Ryan's indecision and inaction lead to him being the only surviving Death Eater. As soon as he realized this he spun on his heels... only to realize that he couldn't apparate out! He glanced at the taller man and saw an evil smile on a shaking head. Ryan grasped the pendant turned emergency portkey around his neck while tightly closing his eyes. A second ticked by before he realized that he wasn't feeling the usual hook behind his navel. Trembling, he slowly opened his eyes to see that the stranger had stopped five feet from himself.

"What's wrong, bud? Can't skedaddle? Did you actually think I'd let you escape?" asked the man with a chastising smile. Ryan reached for his wand only to see the man raise a hand and snap his fingers. Every single DE's wand shot from their bodies and landed on the ground before the warrior. However, he plucked Ryan's out from the air as it approached.

Falling to his knees, Ryan began sobbing hysterically.

"Please! Please don't kill me! I'm sorry! I was just marked yesterday! This is my first mission! Please don't kill me!"

"Tut, tut. You really are a greenhorn, ain't ya? What's your name, guy?"

"Ryan T-tarm-mine, sir." Ryan sobbed.

"Hmm... alright kid, if I let you live and remove your mark, will you accept your punishment, straighten up, and fly right?"

"Yes."

Nodding, Jaxom closed the distance between them and rolled up Ryan's sleeve. He placed his hand on the dark mark and closed his eyes.

"Try anything funny, Ryan, and you will die before you can so much as think 'oh shit!' Understand?"

receiving an acknowledgment, Jaxom relaxed his fingers and let his magic flow. It traveled through his hand and into the mark. It searched for the element of the spell that bound the mark to the recipient. As soon as it located that essential element, Jaxom's magic struck, dissolving the bonds of the mark. Pain shot straight to Ryan's brain, robbing him of consciousness. Jaxom caught the young man as he fell and gently lowered him the ground. As the bystanders watched the strange interactions, they saw the mark flow off Ryan's arm like so much ink.

Jaxom rose unsteadily to his feet. It took quite a bit of energy for him to use that much control and it took about thirty seconds for him to regain his composure. After he had rested a bit, he casually gestured to the pile of pilfered wands causing them to erupt into flames. He turned to leave, already thinking about his delicious ice cream when an intense cold flooded the alley. Jaxom turned to the sky to see twenty wraith-like figures flying towards him.

"Oh, gorram it!" muttered an increasingly annoyed Jaxom.

He sunk into a defensive crouch, easily holding off the effects of the dementors. Gathering his best memories, Jaxom began to build energy for his patronus. He had to charge because his patronus, or yogi as Jax affectionately called it, actually destroyed dementors instead of just repelling them. Even the strongest minds, however, can be overcome with enough numbers. For just as he was about to release the patronus, another twenty of the vile creatures appeared. With the latest waves of dementor energy, Jaxom was forced to his knees with hands clasped to his head. Screams erupted inside his mind as they closed in. Over the screams, however, came a heart wrenching argument.

"I gotta say, you piece of shit, you got farther any other guy in a good long while. Yeah... you definitely have patience." a pink haired woman was screaming, clutching a sheet around her nude form. Jaxom was on his knees near the door from the bedroom with an expression of pure heartbreak strewn across his face.

"B-but Dora... you don't understand! I was only asking..."

"No! I don't give a fuck about your pathetic excuses! Get out!"

"Please... I didn't mean to hurt you! I love you... I told you last night. Please don't do this."

"Please don't do this" was all any conscious bystander that remained could hear from the once confidant man as he knelt sobbing in the street while dementors closed in. One approached the apparently broken man and grasped his chin.


	3. History

One of the few good things about modern times: If you die horribly on television, you will not have died in vain. You will have entertained us.- Kurt Vonnegut

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An extremely pissed off young woman stormed into 'The Whispering Spirit' on a mission. Nymphadora Tonks had just come from a horrible date. It only took five minutes for the guy to ask her to turn into someone else. She had stormed out after shoving a lit candle into his crotch.

This was a usual in her dating life and frankly she was sick of it. Sometimes, being a metamorphmagus was a real bitch. It almost seemed impossible for her to find a true relationship with all these guys wanting a fucking sex toy. She continued fuming as she made her way to the bar, not noticing that she had caught the eye of one of the patrons.

"Give me your strongest Horace." demanded Tonks as she dropped onto a stool. Horace, knowing what was wrong with her from previous experience, didn't comment on her behavior.

"Put it on **my **tab Horace...anything she wants." stated a young man of about eighteen or nineteen with black eyes that held immense pain, but also a glimmer of hope. Seeing the barkeep nod in agreement, he turned and walked over to his booth without so much as a backwards glance.

"Who the hell was that?"

"Hm? Oh...that's Jaxom. One of my regulars."

"Isn't he a little young to be drinking?" inquired the young women, slipping into auror mode.

"Yeah, but he's not drinking."

"Then why's he here?"

"What can I say...kid loves vanilla ice cream."

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Jaxom sat in his booth, savoring the taste of Horace's specially made ice cream and pondering the latest arrival. That pink-haired girl was definitely an intriguing person. Too bad she was obviously coming from a bad experience. His train of thought was derailed as he felt someone approaching him with a purpose. As soon as she was close he gave a casual "Evening'".

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Sitting down across from him, an irate Tonks sent the most annoyed and suspicious glare she could muster. She became even more aggravated as he just continued to sit there, casually eating his ice cream and smiling at her. They sat there in in a quasi-tense (tense for her) silence as she waited for him to speak first.

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Jaxom kept spooning ice cream into his mouth. He knew that she was trying to force him to speak first, but after traveling the world, facing from everything giants to crumple-horn snorkacks, she didn't cut it. Now those snorkacks were real bitches. Many thought that they didn't exist. If only. Admittedly, snorkacks were docile and pleasant creatures, what with their sheep-like appearance and cute little blue horns, but accidentally walk up on one nesting...oh boy. Jaxom gave an imperceptible shudder as he remembered the angry mother morphing into an eight-foot tall, werewolf man-bat combo with a horn longer and sharper than his sword. That was a hell of a fight.

"So what's your deal?" questioned the woman across the table,bringing Jax from his memories of that intense battle.

"That depends on what you have to barter with." he replied with a straight face. "I don't work cheap, y'know."

"Cut the shit!" she hissed, "Why did you pay for me?"

"Oh...that!" laughed Jaxom, only to see her progressively pissed off expression. "Look, don't think I was trying to buy you off or anything. Not my style. I saw that you were pissed over something and needed a drink. I figured it'd help if you didn't have to pay to drown your sorrow."

"Bullshit! Guys don't pay for anything unless they want something in return."

"I know...and its a damn shame that common courtesy is so close to extinction. Listen, if I was after a good rut, I would not be using the cliched 'I bought you drinks so now you owe me' move. If I was trying to get with you wouldn't even know until we were in the middle of the horizontal lambada.

She remained cautious, but figured that this was a chance to take out some aggression on the opposite sex. This plan was derailed, however, as soon as he next spoke.

"However, I've learned that an interested ear along with the free drink tends to heal the hurt."

"..."

"What I mean is, I'm all ears if you need to rant about something."

Jaxom kept a slightly amused expression as he locked his gaze on her confused face. After about three minutes of tense/casual silence, he finally took pity on her.

"May I make a guess?" he waited until he got her hesitant nod. "I'm gonna start broad with relationship troubles. Seeing as how that is easy, I'm gonna narrow it down with a couple facts as I see them. First...you're a metamorphmagus and this ain't your natural form, right?"

"How do you know that?!" she angrily demanded.

"Well, the triple m was easy..." Jaxom casually gestured to the top of her head. "unless they've invented mood wigs, which would be pretty damn cool. The color of your hair has been changing at random intervals since you walked in."

"Okay, but how would you know if this was my natural form or not?" she asked, slightly calmer.

"That was a bit more subtle. I was able to discern that by way of your movements. By which I mean that, in this form, your natural sense of balance is off kilter. I'm assuming that this is the appearance you usually take, yes?" nod "Well...that leads me to assume that you tend to suffer from not-so-rare bouts of clumsiness."

"Yeah, but I haven't even stumbled since I've been here." rebutted Tonks, having completely forgotten her anger toward this strange man.

"And that would have been enough to deceive any normal person. I, however, have been taught to spot the subtleties as the composition of some one's stride. When you walk in this form, I can tell that you subconsciously plan out every step. As opposed to someone in their natural form where every step is instinctual. Now...the fact that you don't even realize that you plan each step leads me to believe that you have been using this artificial form for at least two or three years."

Tonks sat stunned as Jaxom continued his lecture.

"Back to the problems now. The way I see it, this is either an argument with a boyfriend or dating troubles. The fact that you seem to have a fair amount of experience with whatever is wrong and, remembering your earlier vehement declaration about men, the boyfriend option is pretty much negated."

"And why is that?"

"Because...the number of occurrences that this problem obviously possesses would tear apart any relationship. Now, taking into consideration your abilities and your reluctance to show your true self, along with the sad truth that most males are shallow little fucks interested in one or two things, I would hazard to guess that you are generally seen as an incredibly intricate sex toy."

"Yes..." mumbled the young auror, rather dejectedly.

Gently placing one hand over hers in the middle of the table, Jaxom continued. "I'll go on to say that you were on a first date with another guy tonight. I say first because, when you walked in, you were more angry than sad. He probably started out nice and sensitive, but as the activity, be it dinner or dancing or whatever went on, he asked if you could change into something else."

Tonks was surprised to realized that she hadn't removed her hands from underneath his. She felt a sense of compassion and belonging flowing through her that she hadn't felt in long while, outside of her parents and her old Hogwarts head of house.

"Would you like to go out sometime?" asked Jaxom.

"W-what?"

"I said...would you like to go out with me sometime. One good way to surpass a bad experience, is to overshadow it with a good one."

"I thought that you didn't expect anything for paying." she accused.

"And I still don't. I was asking for one date. In fact...you could count this as a date as you wish."

"How so?"

"Well, we're in a bar just talking, so..."

"Sounds like it's already a date." she stated matter-of-factly.

"No. Right now, I'm just a caring and rather dashing stranger providing an ear. It will be a date if, and only if, **you** say so."

"What if I don't say so?"

"Then I continue on in my present role. I sit here until you have no more wish to speak. Then I leave."

"And if I do say so?"

"Then it gets more personal. We talk about ourselves, I escort you home, we say goodnight, and we decide if we want to continue to date. Its as simple as that. So...what do you say?"

"I think that a date might be...nice." said a reluctant Tonks.

With a smile, Jaxom withdrew his hands from hers. She felt the distinct loss of worth from his calloused hands until he stuck one back out.

"In that case...My name is Jaxom Trantic. And you are?"

"Nymphadora Tonks, but call me Tonks. I hate my first name." she said, grasping his outstretched hand.

"Fair enough. It really is a beautiful name, though."

The two sat for hours, just talking about random topics. They discussed everything from the weather to animagi. Jaxom told her of his two animagus forms, a grizzly bear and a Siberian tiger, and how having the instincts and natures of two predators could be tough to control. Tonks found a sense of serenity while conversing with Jaxom and loosened up a great deal. She told of her childhood and her parents along with some of her first experiences with her abilities. Then, the conversation turned to Jaxom's past.

"Well...my father died when I was around two. Me and mom moved to a little country town outside of London for two years before the wizarding war reached us." He trailed off for a moment in an attempt to keep his composure.

"You don't have to go on if you can't." stated Tonks, placing her hands over his on the table.

"I gotta if I want to move on. Anyway...a horde of death enters attacked our town. I was always smart for my age, so I knew we were in serous trouble. My mom drug me throughout the village until we were cornered by two in an alley. They hit us with the torture curse. I had to force myself to her side through my own pain. I can still hear her screams and feel as her heart exploded from the over exertion."

"You were able to move under the cruciatus?!"

"huh...yeah."

"Most adults can't do more than writhe while under the lightest curse, and you were able to crawl to your mother's side as a child. You must have been a surprise for the death eaters."

"That's nothin'..." Jaxom replied in a monotone. "They increased the strength until I felt my eardrums rupture from my mom's screams. My power exploded. I killed one of them with barely a thought, then followed the other to the rest of the group. The leader was, as I later found out, a man by the name of L. Malfoy. I can't wait to get my hands on that bastard."

"So...what happened to the other DE's?"

"Well, after I'd reached them, I decimated the other man from the alley. That coward, Malfoy ordered my death then apparated out. They did their AK thing, which was stopped by my magic. The shield that I'd thrown up, completely on instinct, absorbed the spells' energy until it reached a critical level and exploded out. Not long after, members of a secret organization retrieved me from the crater that was my town. They trained me for the next decade or so. Since I left them, I've made my own way by primarily taking bounties."

Tonks just stared at this man, whose story could rival Harry Potter's. They remained silent for a few more minutes until she looked at her watch.

"Shit! I've got to get home. I really want to do this again. I'll owl you later, 'kay"

Jaxom smiled and reached in to one of the steel rings attached to his gloves. His fingers disappeared inside the ring as he dug for something.

"I've actually got something better. These rings are focuses for dimensional sub pockets where I can store just about anything. Ain't magic grand?"

He pulled out what looked like a muggle cell-phone and tossed it to her.

"Here. Just say my name into the speaker and I'll answer."

And with that, the pair separated with a firm handshake and a chaste kiss on the cheek.

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Jaxom and Tonks, or Dora as he had taken to calling her to her initial chagrin, had been dating for a good four weeks and both were thoroughly enjoying it. Currently, the couple was curled up on Tonks' couch with arms wrapped around each other when she voiced a question that had been sitting on her mind since their third date.

"Hey Jax..."

"Hmmm?"

"How come you haven't tried to sleep with me yet?"

Jaxom, forever the unusual, merely faced her with a quirked eyebrow.

"Awfully blunt, eh Dora?"

"Well, I couldn't think of another way to ask and its been driving me around the bend."

"You that eager to bed me, Dora?" Jaxom asked with a bemused smile.

"Its not that. Its just...its not what I'm used to. Four weeks and not even an attempt. Why?"

"Cause I love you too much to risk it." Jaxom replied, always keeping his ebony gaze on her violet eyes.

"Well sure, but..." she stopped. "Wait...what?"

"I said I love you too much to risk it."

"Y-you love me?"

"Yep, I sumph!" Jaxom didn't get any farther for the pair of lips locked with his. The two engaged in a passionate embrace that traveled from the couch to her bed...

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Two sweaty figures rested on top of a well-used bed in post union breathlessness. Jaxom wrapped his arms around Tonks' heaving shoulders and pulled her tight against him. They resided in silence for a few minutes until it was broken by Jax.

"Hey, Dora?"

"Hmmm...yeah, Jax?"

"I was wondering if I could see you as..."

'**SMACK**'

"You **Bastard**!"


	4. Fight

Don't go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first. --Mark Twain

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Some believe that an animagus is a wizard who shifts into an animal form and that is it they believe wrong. Truthfully, an animagus is not all that different from a werewolf. Both actually have merged with the animal spirit their form is based on. Both carry the talents and abilities of their animal forms while human. Both can lose control to their animals for a time. The main difference is rather obvious however. The animagus can choose when to change while the werewolf usually can not.

The animagus with the form of a natural predator tends to have a bit more difficult of a time controlling his or her animal. In the instances where advanced levels of mental physical or emotional duress, the ferocity of the predator can be extremely dangerous to those around you, or extremely helpful as a weapon against one's enemies.

The control of the animal spirit is even more difficult for the rare animagus with multiple forms. Especially when both forms are predators. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on point of view), our friend Jaxom was one of these rarities.

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All of the faceless black hoods were focused on the figure in the grasp of their kin. Two of the more eager dementors closed in on the left and right of their latest meal, rotten lips slathered with stagnant drool of anticipation. Their empty sockets were so rapturously focused on the tiny sphere of blue energy floating from their prey's mouth, they didn't noticed the sudden build up of magic.

It was noticed, however, when the sphere raced back into the mouth and the eyes sprung open, burning with an intense blue light that drew the dementor's attention immediately. Jaxom's arms shot to the sides, a wave of magic blasting all but two of the vile creatures back. The two exceptions were kept in place by his clenching hands burying into their hoods and heads. With a heavy forward step, Jaxom viciously yanked his hands together across his chest. They pulled with them a trail of silicate from the hoods, rendering the rotten forms into a cloud of dust that blew away with the wind.

The other dementors, incapable of showing expression, radiated shock and horror over the destruction of their kin. Their prey, now turned predator, launched forward parallel to the ground. As his leap lowered, his palms and crooked fingers actually dug into the stone of the street. Muscles tensed as he flung himself forward. The only remaining conscious bystander watched on, amused, as Jaxom sprinted forth on all fours like a tiger mid-chase.

The dementors watched on as the human leaped with feline agility towards another of their number. They could no longer sense any emotion from their would-be meal. All they felt was an intense sense of survival.

The cat-like movements waned as Jaxom swung a mighty upward slash to the first dementor. A trail of dust followed the hand up from the bottom of the dark creature's form. As soon as the cutting strike went through the hooded head, the entirety of the cloaked body lost all cohesion and crumbled. The dark figures could clearly feel two volatile instincts warring to protect their vessel as the human-turned-beast immediately switched targets, dropping back into his low sprint. His next victim hovered, still confused, ten feet from the ground. Building up speed, he easily closed the distance.

Landing with his feet planted in the thing's frail chest, Jaxom raked his curved fingers through it's rotten throat. Launching off of the swiftly disintegrating body, he flew, fists extended and body as straight as an arrow, towards another. Not even trying to alter his trajectory, Jaxom drove every ounce of his body weight into the dementor's head. As the now decapitated soul sucker fell to dust, the remaining number finally acted.

Half of the dementor forces fled before this threat while the others, intent on finishing the meal they had started, pressed forward. With their auras on full blast, they tried once again to overwhelm Jaxom. Because he was no longer operating with emotion, however, there was no effect as he stood still, back slightly hunched and right arm slightly swaying back and forth in preparation.

As soon as the first dementor got within arms reach, Jaxom swung his hand forward in a wide arc. The crushing blow caught the creature square in the chest. It exploded in a cloud of dust as a wide beam of blue energy erupted from its back. The remaining forces tried in vain to escape the onrush of magic as, one by one, they were encompassed and destroyed.

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Alastor 'Mad-eye' Moody had faced many things in hid long career as an auror. During the first war against Voldemort, for instance, he had seen and felt the effects of the dementors so often that he was all but immune to them. It was this fact that enabled him to witness the power of this familiar wizard.

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As the light faded and the dust fell, Jaxom was crouched low, fingertips resting on the street between his feet. Seeing no additional threats, the animals within him receded from his consciousness, granting him control once again. Slowly rising from his crouch, he took stock of his surroundings with his newly restored human perception. Suddenly, he spun around, pulling one of his pistols, and fired one shot.

"You know, Jax..." stated Moody as he glanced down at his false leg and the new hole that resided with in it, "that might have hurt if you'd hit my real leg."

"Please! You wouldn't have flinched and you know it, Mad-beard." rebuked the young man as he strode towards Moody.

"I hope you realize that, if anyone else called me that I'd beat 'em with my false leg."

"Yeah, but you love me like a grandson. You wouldn't beat me even if you could. And I'm fine by the way."

"I know..." Moody chuckled, "I was the man who trained you for most of your life."

"True." "Seriously though, I'm glad you finally learned to let your animal spirits take control when needed. I was actually worried that I'd lose my best student there for a second."

Jaxom clasped his mentor's forearm in greeting and then pulled the grizzled old auror into a hug. If anyone else had been awake, they would have been shocked to witness the paranoid senior return the hug with equal fervour.

"It's been too long, sir." the young warrior said, his voice thick with emotion.

After a few seconds, the two men released each other and walked off. As they turned into a deserted off-shoot of the alley, a multitude of pops were heard. They turned to see a squad of aurors.

"Would you look at that," laughed Jaxom. "They show up in time to clean up."

Their laughter reverberated through the small alley. Jaxom halted, however, when he caught site of a female auror with mousy-brown hair and a heart-shaped face. His heart skipped a beat when he saw the woman he loved. Just as quickly as he had started laughing, he immediately sobered. Moody, noticing his former pupil's sudden shift, threw his glance towards the auror.

"That's Tonks." he stated with the hint of a question in his voice.

"Yeah..."

Tension filled the small space until Moody decided to change the subject.

"Jax, have you made any progress?"

Before Jaxom could reply, Renth alighted on his shoulder and stared at the older man. Knowing what was expected, Moody pulled his wand, nonchalantly casting an AK at a nearby scurrying rat (No...not Wormtail). He summoned the lifeless body and tossed it to the fire lizard. Swallowing the tiny rodent whole, Renth released a resonating hum from deep in his throat.

Jaxom grasped his teacher's shoulder and they vanished with a slight gust, only to reappear in another alley that lay perpendicular to a busy muggle street. Before either could say a thing, they were distracted by an argument coming from deeper within the alley.

"Please! I wasn't watching him! I just happened to look in his direction!"

"Shut the fuck up! I warned you about looking at other men! When will you ever **learn**!" the last word was punctuated with a hard slap.

Looking toward the source of the sounds, Moody and Jaxom saw a woman of about twenty-five and a man of thirty or so. He had a vice-like grip on her shoulder. Where her shirt sleeve was being pulled up , several deep purple bruises along her arm could be seen. Her tear-stained face was branded with a harsh red hand print and one eye was beginning to swell.

Jaxom growled how in his throat as he began walking towards the pair. Renth leaped from his shoulder to alight on the top of Moody's walking stick. The unorthodox pair glanced at each other before turning to watch their incredibly pissed off friend stalked away. Just as the man reeled back to slap the woman again, a hand shot out of nowhere and grabbed his wrist hard. He was jerked off of his feet and into a pile of garbage bags as Jaxom stepped between him and the shocked woman.

"Are you alright?" he asked her.

"Why did you do that?!"

"huh?"

"You could have seriously hurt him!" she declared, rushing to the man's side and helping him up.

"Hurt **him**! He was just beating you like his dick on a lonely night for no good reason!" Jaxom said incredulously.

"He just gets like that sometimes." she muttered, supporting the man as he shook his head to clear the cobwebs.

"He beats you regularly?! Then why the fuck are you with him?" "Look pal..." started the man with a shit-eating grin plastered across his face. "You need to lear your place. She already knows hers. Why don't you run along while I take her home and..."

The man's smug attitude was what sealed the deal as Jaxom's tension from the dementors and seeing Dora snapped. He lunged forward, wrapping his hand around the man's neck. Without moving the rest of his body, Jaxom viciously wrenched his arm back, sending the ass stumbling past him and into the opposite wall of the alley face first. With an angry growl, Jaxom spun around and grabbed the back of the man's head.

The woman watched on, frozen in fear and awe as the stranger repeatedly slammed her boyfriend's face into the unyielding brick wall. The look on his face was one of pure rage and sorrow as tears slowly leaked from behind the reflective sunglasses.

"You! Don't! Treat! People! Like! Possessions!" Jax grunted with each collision of the asshole's face and the wall.

With a final meeting of flesh and brick, Jaxom dropped the bloody pulp of a man and turned to the woman. She could have sworn that the outside of his sunglasses were glowing a faint blue as he stood staring at her.

"I don't know what you're trying to prove by staying with this piece of moldy horse shit here," he rumbled, gesturing behind him to the masticated face on the ground. "but you need to wise the fuck up and ditch his ass. By staying with him just for him to mistreat you like that, all you're proving is that you're so stupid you deserve to be seen as thing."

With that, Jaxom stormed off, muttering something that sounded suspiciously like 'stupid bitch'. He made his way past Moody and Renth and out of onto the busy street. With a questioning look to Renth, Moody sedately followed his extremely angry surrogate son.


	5. Meeting

For every door that closes a new one opens, though at times its good to re-open doors long closed in hopes of finding yet another new door to step through...-FatticusXL

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At number 12 Grimmauld place, there was chaos. When arriving in Diagon Alley in response to a Death Eater attack, all that the Order of the Phoenix fond were twenty-nine dead raiders. Every single one of the black-robed bodies had single holes in vital areas. All the reports from witnesses pointed a blue-coated warrior who used muggle weaponry. Around the house's kitchen, twelve people were arguing about what should be done. Views varied from nothing to arresting the mystery man. Albus Dumbledore sat at the head of the long table, idly stroking his silvery right hand. After a curse, placed on Marvollo Gaunt's ring, had killed his hand, the only way to prevent it from spreading was to amputate. In its pace, a magical prosthetic was conjured. He, while happy that there were no civilian casualties, was upset about the needless theft of lives that could have been redeemed.

"We need to find whoever did this and bring him in!" declared Hestia Jones.

"Whoever it is, they eliminated twenty-nine of the dark lord's followers." rebutted Amos Diggory. "I say we leave them be and let them continue."

Before anyone could answer, a distinctly reptilian screech and the sounds of and Mrs. Black's usual speel filled the house. After about thirty seconds, her speech degraded into an earsplitting wail accompanied by the smell of burning paint. Every member of the old house rushed to the entryway, only to see a scorch mark on the wall where the irritating piece of 'art' had hung. Turning away from the wall, the crowd took in the sight of Moody standing smugly by a young man in a deep blue duster.

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"You sure I can get in contact with Potter here, sir?" asked Jaxom as the dingy visage of number twelve sprung into view.

"Yeah. Potter's here for the remainder of the summer until school starts." came the gruff reply as the old auror limped up to the door.

Sharing a look with Renth, who was sitting on his shoulder, Jaxom followed. Entering behind his mentor, Jax took in the dark hallway and disturbing adornments. The house elf heads stared blankly back at him as he passed, distracting him long enough to brush against a nearby curtain. The drapes sprung open, dragging a surprised screech from the little fire lizard and revealing a haggard old woman who promptly began to scream.

"FILTH! DIRT! Garbage defiling the house of my fathers!" the insults and outrage continued to fly out of the old bitch's mouth.

"She important?" Jaxom yelled into Moody's ear. Receiving a negative, the young man stepped forward, rummaging in one of the rings attached to his gloves. As he reached the portrait, he pulled out a can of lighter fluid with he proceeded to douse the painting in the flammable substance. Stepping back, he nodded to the creature on his shoulder. Taking his cue, Renth inhaled deeply and spewed blue flames onto the soaked portrait. As the flame made contact with the canvas, the ranting degraded into a harsh scream. Jaxom and Moody watched stoically as the small inferno devoured the canvas and frame.

After another twenty seconds, Jaxom doused the flames as a horde of people stormed into the entry way. Leading the group from a side door was a tall man with a flowing white beard. Jaxom could feel the power surging from the wizened old man as he looked to the forefront of the younger group that had come from the upper floors of the house. Covered black eyes contacted with startling green and Trantic knew that he had found his target.

"And who is your friend, Alastor?" asked the old man, ignoring the scorched wall for now.

"Potential member." was all Moody would say as he pushed past the crowd and through the side door. The rest of the adults followed a portly, red-headed woman shooed the younger people away. Meeting that same pair of vibrant green eyes once more, Jaxom shrugged and followed the others out of the hall.

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Back upstairs, the golden trio and Ginny were arranged in the boys' rooms.

"Who do you think that was?" asked Ginny, eyes shining.

"Don't know, but he was a weird looking bloke." replied Ron as his eyes narrowed suspiciously at his sister's look.

"Yes..." stated Hermione, "he was dressed rather strangely, even for a muggle. And did you see that creature on his shoulder? I think it was a fire lizard! They are supposed to be extinct!"

Harry stared out of the window next to his bed, completely ignoring his friend's lectures and conjectures. When he'd stared into the reflective blue lenses of the stranger's shades, he'd felt some kind of connection. It was like the two were destined to meet for something important. Harry didn't know why, but he had to talk to the weird man.

"Harry?" Hermione's questioning tone of voice brought his eyes to hers. As their gazes locked, he once again felt the fluttering in his stomach that always accompanied a glance in her direction. He knew that he was crazy about the bushy-haired brunette, but his damn nobility prevented him from telling her. He'd seen the way Ron, his best mate, constantly looked at the bookworm-turned-bombshell and resigned himself to the loss of his dream girl.

"Yeah, Hermione?" Before she could answer, the bedroom door opened and Remus Lupin stuck his head in.

"Harry. Hermione. You're both needed in the kitchen ." Looking to each other, they rose and, ignoring the weak protests of the agitated red-heads, left the room.

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As soon as the group was seated around the kitchen table, Albus turned to his old friend.

"Would you care to explain your companion, Alastor?"

"Alright, this is..." he was interrupted by Severus Snape before he could continue.

"Is that an actual fire lizard on your shoulder?" he demanded, pointing to Jaxom. "I thought that they were extinct."

"Obviously not." deadpanned the young man.

"A cornucopia of rare ingredients..." muttered the potion master, staring at the small creature hungrily. His gaze immediately shifted to the dark blade whose point was resting against his throat. Looking up the blade, engraved with what looked like the pattern of swirling energy, Snape saw what looked like a dragon's claw separating the blade from the hilt. At the end of the handle, which appeared to be covered in dragon skin, a metal rendition of the fire lizard's head was frozen in mid roar.

"You **ever** look at Renth like that again, and I'll gut you like a fuckin' fish."

Immediately, nine wands were leveled at Jaxom's face. Moody shot up, placing himself between his fellow order members and his protege. Thirteen looks of complete shock focused on the auror.

"Stow the wands! Snape was out of line eying Renth like that." Every wand was lowered, but none were put away. "Good enough. Jaxom...you've made your point."

Rolling his eyes at the pun, Jaxom lowered his sword from the grease ball's throat. Twirling the blade and placing the tip on the steel ring of his left glove, he pushed the sword into the space. To every one's, bar Moody's, shock the entire sword disappeared onto the ring.

"Now, this is Jaxom Trantic. He's an old friend of mine."

"Hey! Who you calling old, mad-beard?" There was a mass intake of breath as shields were discretely thrown up. Moody stared hard at his 'friend' before he actually **smiled**.

"Bite me, Jax. This is the man who drove off the Death Eaters in Diagon Alley this morning."

"That's one way to say it." scoffed Jaxom. The shocked looks immediately shifted to ones of outrage and gratitude. Several of those present leveled their wands again as shouts rose. Jaxom bemusedly listened listened as he was simultaneously berated and thanked for killing the Death Eaters. After a few minutes, Dumbledore finally cleared his throat and all noises ceased. Standing, Albus met Trantic's eyes.

"While I **am** grateful that no innocents were killed, I must say that I'm disappointed that you killed those people."

"And why is that?"

"You viciously negated any chance for them to reform. To take their lives, you must drop their level."

"Which is why Riddle is kicking your asses." replied Jaxom, smirking at the old man's shocked look. Suddenly, a last of music filled the room. Jaxom rooted through his coat pockets until he pulled out a muggle cell phone. Disregarding the impromptu audience, he flipped open the phone and placed it to his ear.

"Yeah? Oh, really... And the stone was still in it? Good. Yeah, just put it in my vault and I'll grab it when I bring in the payment for my latest job...Yeah, I'll swing by in the next few hours and take you out for some ice cream...Don't bullshit me. You love it and you know it. Oh! I've found the last one...Yep, so if I bring him in with me can you remove it without killing him? Great, great. Alright...later." Closing and stowing the phone, Jaxom noticed the incredulous looks the others were throwing him.

"What?" "What was that?" asked a red-headed man, intrigued.

"Cell-phone? Seriously, you people really need to get with the times. Muggle technology is ripe for the picking and you just ignore it."

"Muggle technology doesn't work around magic." spat Snape.

"Usually not, but my tech runs off my magic. And before anyone tries to arrest me, it is not charmed."

"Then how does it work?" asked the same red-head.

"That is a question for another time. Who was it you were talking to, Mr. Trantic?"

"Ragnok. We got a deal going and he was informing me of the latest...acquisition."

"So, you offered to take the head of the goblin nation out for ice cream?!" some one asked.

"Yeah. He tries to act like he hates it, but the little fucker just can't get enough banana splits."

"And this deal?" asked Amos Diggory.

"Ah...that is something that I will not discuss without Harry Potter and Hermione Granger in the room." As expected, shouts of rejection flared up following that statement. Jax leaned against the wall as order was restored and Dumbledore turned to him.

"Why do you require the presence of Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger?"

"Because they are directly linked to this deal. Actually...that ain't completely true. Harry is directly linked. Hermione is linked through her love for him and his love for her."

"If that is the case, then surely Mr. Weasley is also needed." stated Dumbledore.

"Not that kind of love. Now, if someone could go get 'em." With a nod of acceptance, Remus Lupin rose and left the room. Then, remembering something, Jax turned to back to the old headmaster.

"Oh...and professor...I'm gonna need your wand."


	6. Explanation

Racism is funny. Prejudice is wrong.-Thoraxe357 (or Carlos Mencia. I 'm not sure who said it first.)

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Silence reigned in the kitchen of number twelve Grimmauld Place as Harry Potter and Hermione Granger entered. They saw every present order member, excepting Dumbledore and Moody, had their wands pointed at the blue-coated stranger.

"What's going on?" asked Harry, drawing most of the attention. Using the distraction, the stranger snapped his fingers. All of the raised wands flew from their owners' hands and into his.

"There is no need for violence, people. All I need is for the good headmaster to present the elder wand so I can take it. That's right, sir, I know that that is, in fact, the legendary wand given to one of three brothers by Death himself.

"And how did you know that, Mr. Trantic?" asked Dumbledore.

"My 'employer' told me." he replied, quoting employer with his fingers.

"And who is your 'employer'?" queried the headmaster, mimicking Jaxom's movements.

"All part of the story I will tell if and when you surrender your wand."

Dumbledore looked to the grizzly visage of Mad-eye Moody. The old auror nodded in response. Knowing the rarity of Moody's gift of trust to anyone, the aged man resignedly withdrew his wand. In the blink of an eye, Jaxom was beside him, driving his index and middle fingers into the old man's arm. Dumbledore was forced to drop the wand as his fingers instantly slackened.

Catching the piece of wood, Jaxom smiled at the headmaster and snapped his fingers again. Every one of the previously pilfered wands returned tho the owners and Jax gestured the shocked Harry and Hermione to the table. As the Order members warily took their seats, Jaxom cleared his throat.

"Now that that's settled, I need an oath that none of you will speak of what I'm about to reveal to anyone outside of his room." nervous glances were thrown at Dumbledore and, receiving his nod of approval, every wand was raised in acceptance. Removing his glasses after the resulting flash of light, Jaxom smiled warmly and continued. "There was a prophecy made by one Sybill Trelawney eighteen years ago. It was, in point of fact, this prophecy that this group was guarding two years ago. Now, don't go glaring at the headmaster. I'm sure that he was doing what he thought right by keeping it close to the vest. This prophecy said that one of two children would be marked as the dark lord's equal. This marked child would be the only one who could defeat that same dark lord.

Now, prophecies are generated by fate, one of the cosmic forces...and she has a huge tendency to fuck her subjects over. I see you agree, Mr. Potter. Well, two other cosmic entities finally had enough of her callous attitude and decided to step in with a prophecy of their own.

"**Power**! **Power the likes of which has not been seen since Merlin himself. The second heir of magic has been awakened by the forces of death and balance. He has been tasked with the annihilation of the snake in God's garden**."

Okay. Admittedly, it wasn't a prophecy so much as it was a dramatic declaration. But whatever. It was given to a group that shall forever remained nameless. They've existed for many a century without discovery and I'm not gonna be the one to ruin that. The child mentioned within the declaration was removed from the smoking remnants of his home village at the age of four and trained for fourteen years. At the completion of his preliminary training, the boy was able to speak directly to Death and Balance. They finally told him of his task. He was told of the return of Lord Voldemort and of his mission to end the dark 'lord's' life. Along with that, he was told of the source of snake face's continued life.

You see, ladies and gentle men, Tom Riddle created seven horcruxes. I can see that everyone here knows at least a little of them, so I'll just skip the explanation. The first part of the boy's task was to eliminate the pieces of Riddle's soul. He was informed of their identities and the general areas they were located in.

Of course, when I say 'general areas', I mean areas of fifty of more miles. Add in the fact that each one was hidden by layers and layers of dark magic and booby traps, and this was still a helluva job. You see, as cosmic forces, Death and Balance are restricted to how much they can directly interfere in our world. Hence the need for an agent.

Anywho, the boy immediately knew how he was going to locate the horcruxes, but he didn't have the money to pay for it. So, he became something akin to a bounty hunter. In both the magical and muggle world. For two years, he tracked down many a criminal, avoiding high ranking Death munchers."

"And why did 'he' avoid them?" asked Hermione.

"Because, Ms. Granger, he needed to avoid the attentions of the dark lord until he was ready. Finally, a year ago, he gathered enough money to pay the Goblin nation for their services.

I'm assuming that, by now, we've all realized that I am the boy in question. No need to roll your eyes, Ms. Granger, we all know of your brilliant mind. In the course of my work, I eventually became friends with the goblins, which has reduced their fees dramatically. But I digress.

That call was to tell me that the second to last horcrux was located. The piece of soul was already removed by the head master here, if I'm not mistaken, but I needed the stone in the ring that housed the horcrux to complete my end of a deal with death.

Which segues quite nicely into my need for this wand. I'm not sure how many of you know the story of the deathly hallows. I'm seeing a couple blank stares, so I'll give you a basic rundown.

Many, many centuries ago, three brothers by the name of Peverell managed to cross a rather treacherous river. For some reason that the big guy hasn't seen to fit to tell me, he offered them a boon for their accomplishment. Each brother was gifted with a powerful magical items. The oldest, Antioch, was given an unbeatable wand. The middle, Cadmus, was given a stone with the power to resurrect any lost soul. Finally the youngest, Ignotus, received an invisibility cloak.

Now, the stone and the wand were dire mistakes on Death's part. While it was true that he expected them to cause the older brothers' deaths in one way or another, and they did, the two objects were supposed to disappear from the the face of the earth after words. That was not what happened. The stone was passed down through the lineages of a vile family who used it for several of their own personal gains. The doorway to the afterlife was constantly being opened and souls removed. This, essentially, usurped Death's authority. And **that**, ladies and gentlemen, pissed him off.

The wand cut a bloody swathe throughout history. Many idiotic people were killed so that the 'unbeatable wand' could be theirs. Countless souls were lost, flooding Death's realm and severely overworking him. As you can guess, that wasn't very appreciated.

So, to make a long story shor..."

"Too late." muttered Amos Diggory.

"...I was told to eliminate the two Hallows. The goblins have put the stone in my Gringotts vault and I hold the wand, so all I have to do is return them to the big man and the deal is done. So...any questions?"

Jaxom's tale was met with awed and incredulous looks. He leaned back in his chair, twirling the stolen wand as he waited for the rest to register his words.

"Wait..." started Hermione, "What about the cloak?"

"Ah...smart lady you've got there, Potter. Well, Ignotus used the cloak of true invisibility to avoid death's touch for years. During that time, he built a life for himself. Married. Had children. The whole nine yards. When it finally came time for him to pass from old age, Ignotus welcomed death like a friend. Seeing what Ignotus had built for himself, Death allowed the cloak to be passed through the family. This family...the descendants of Ignotus Peverell...have since dwindled to one. And that final descendant is sitting right there."

Every eye turned to follow Jax's direction and fell on a flabbergasted Harry.

"Y-you mean **my** cloak is one of the Deathly Hallows?"

"That's right, bud. Bur don't worry, your family was, and still is, allowed to keep it."

"Quick question..." spoke up a tall black man, "you said the second-to-last horcrux was located." Seeing Jaxom's nod, he continued. "If that is the case, then where...and **what** is the last one?"

"Well...first you need to know that the seventh horcrux was never intended to be. It was created by sheer chance. When the truly evil intent of attempting to murder an infant coincided with the pure love it took to a mother to sacrifice herself for her child, it basically ripped a chunk of the would be murderer's soul out of his body. With no where to go, it latched on to the nearest thing it could find."

"So the final horcrux resides in the remnants of Godric's Hollow?" asked Dumbledore with a subtle tone of hope.

"No. Let me rephrase that. With no where to go, the piece of soul latched on to the nearest **living** thing it could find." He looked towards the ashen face of Harry Potter. "Didn't you ever wonder why you received a scar from a curse that leaves no mark. Didn't you ever wonder how that same scar could connect your's and Riddle's mind?'

"What are you trying to say?" asked Harry, his mind refusing to connect the dots as a gasp sounded from where Hermione sat. Suddenly, the boy-who-lived was enveloped in a bone-breaking hug. His face was shrouded behind a curtain of brown hair as tears soaked into his shoulder.

"Mione! What's wrong? Why are you crying?"

"Because there is a piece of the dark lord's soul embedded inside of the man she loves." stated Jaxom stoically. Hermione's tears doubled as she gasped and ran from the room. Throwing a shocked/angry look at Jax, Harry rose and made to follow his friend. However, Jax appeared beside him and caught his arm.

"Look, I know that you two need to have a talk, but right now wee need to go to Gringotts. Headmaster...if you would be so kind as to accompany us so that you are assured of Harry's safety?"

Without a word, the still shocked Dumbledore rose and placed his hand a blue-coated shoulder, being careful to avoid the still agitated fire lizard. A slight flash of light announced their departure as the rest of the order tried to wrap their mind around the afternoon's proceedings.

**Oo00VDLTM00oo**

Three humans and one fire lizard reappeared in a plush office. Looking around, Harry saw the many weapons, shields, and pieces of armor hanging on the walls. Directly across from an ornate golden door was a large desk made of what appeared to be black marble, inlaid with silver patters. Behind the desk sat the most intimidating goblin he had ever seen.

"What's happnin Raggie?" asked Jaxom, sitting before the desk and crossing his legs.

"Mr. Trantic. Must you disregard etiquette every time we meet?" asked the goblin in deep, gravelly voice. Not even Harry missed the slight twitch at the corner of his fanged mouth.

"It's what I do, sir." Jax replied with a smile. "Can we go ahead and get rid of this little piece of shit?"

Nodding, Ragnok snapped his long fingers. The golden door opened and a group of seven robed goblins entered. Jax led Harry to the center of the office where the small creatures surrounded him.

"Alright Harry. These sorcerers are go are going to extract the soul without killing you. This is gonna take a good two hours, so I'm gonna head out to complete my deal. Raggie...I'm gonna need a rain check on the ice cream, bud. Is later today okay?"

The leader of the goblin nation nodded, a slightly disappointed look on his face, and Jaxom left the office. As the golden door shut, the sorcerers began chanting in Gobbledegook. A dome of bright light erupted into being around Harry, obscuring from view.

"I suggest you make yourself comfortable, Headmaster." stated Ragnok, gesturing to a plush chair. "This will take a good long while."

**oo00VDLTM00oo**

Two and a half hours had passed within number twelve Grimmauld place. Hermione Granger was currently ensconced in the farthest reaches of the Black family library, trying to decide what she was going to do.

She had no idea how this 'Jaxom' character had known her secret. Her love for Harry was something she was constantly attempting to hide, for fear of rejection. Now, not only had the strange man revealed that secret, but he'd revealed it to Harry himself.

So far, no one had come to check on her, leading her to believe that Harry had been revolted. Now she needed some way to dispel this. Some way to regain that supposedly lost friendship. Maybe she could...

"Hermione?" the sound of Remus Lupin's voice pulled her from her contemplations.

"In the back." she sullenly replied.

A few moments later, the tired face of the lycan came around one of the bookshelves. Seeing the depression girl he thought of as a surrogate daughter-in-law, he instantly went to her side and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"He hates me, doesn't he?" she said after a few silent seconds.

"Who?"

"Harry. He thinks I'm just some stalker freak."

"No! Of course not. Why would you think that?"

"That 'Jaxom' man just revealed my biggest secret to Harry himself. I ran out sobbing, and you're the only one to come after me. He must be revolted."

"The reason he isn't here right now is because Jaxom took him and the Headmaster to Gringotts to have the horcrux removed. I waited so long to come after you so that you could have some time to think.. Apparently, that wasn't the right move. He does **not** hate you."

Any further conversation was foregone as a high-pitched "Harry!" sounded from the direction of the kitchen.

"Come on..." said the werewolf, pulling Hermione to her feet.

The pair made their way downstairs quietly. Entering the kitchen, they were both shocked speechless at the very different young man before them.

Gone was the malnourished, beaten appearance. Gone were the horrid glasses. Gone was the ugly scar. Gone was the shy, unsure demeanor. In its place stood a strong young man that exuded power. Vivid green eyes radiated from his face as they locked on Hermione's.

Without further ado, the new Harry Potter strolled forward and, pulling the startled young woman into his arms, locked their lips. Hermione stiffened, then melted into the strong arms. Neither noticed or cared about the shocked expressions or anger radiating from two pissed off red heads as they stormed up to them.

Before there was an altercation, however, a chuckle resonated through the silent room. Looking towards the hallway, everyone saw the smug Jaxom Trantic leaning on the door frame.

"Isn't it beautiful?" he asked, feigning a swooning motion. "Now, before any arguments break out, allow me to announce a successful and unnoticed trip to the department of mysteries."

"You broke into the DoM?" asked and incredulous Hestia Jones.

"Yup."

"You honestly expect us to believe that **you**, dressed as garishly as you are, snuck into the most secure department of the Ministry of Magic...during the workday?" demanded Arthur Weasley. "Surely you can't be serious."

"Oh, you better habeeb it. By the way, don't call me Shirley. And no, I'm not serious."

Jaxom stepped out of the doorway, pointing his finger over his shoulder.

"He is."

Through the open the door walked another man. Every jaw dropped at the sight of the still-scraggly black hair and gaunt, smirking, face. Harry's eyes filled with tears as he looked at a face he thought lost forever.

"S-s-sirius?"


	7. Revival

_If you always do what you've always done, then you always get what you've always got. -_Special agent Anthony DiNozzo

oo00VDLTM00oo

"Hey, pup. You're looking goooof!" Sirius' observation was cut short as Harry, acting every bit the child he was never allowed to be, tackled the older man in a hug. Tears streamed from both pairs of eyes as the two men greeted each other.

After a few seconds, Sirius raised his head and beckoned to a still startled Lupin. The tired man hastily made his way over and joined in the hug. There was hardly a dry eye in the room as the marauders were reunited once more. Not even the still irate young Weasleys dared to interrupt this beautiful moment.

"Well this is charming..." sneered the oily voice of Severus Snape as he glided into the kitchen. "May I ask, however, how it is that the mutt is alive?"

"You really have a death wish, don't 'cha?" asked Jaxom as Harry spun on his heel and strode over to the potions professor.

"Wotcher!" exclaimed a tired voice as Nymphadora Tonks walked into the kitchen. Her usually vibrant pink hair was a dull, mousy brown and dark circles all but glowed underneath her eyes. She slumped to the pantry to remove out a butterbeer, not paying any attention to the scene around her.

"Um...Tonks?" began Hermione, tilting her head toward the three men.

"Yeah?" she looked up and, seeing Hermione's indication, glanced in the proper direction. What she saw made her entire head, including hair and eyes, pale to a ghastly gray. "S-s-s-ir-irius?"

Seeing the many nods, she jumped up and ran to the trio. Two feet from them, she tripped on an arrant patch of air and sprawled into the group, sending them all to the ground. Tears flowing from her eyes as she embraced the winded Sirius.

"T-tonks!" gasped the freshly revived man. "Unless you want me dead again, you should let me breathe."

Slightly embarrassed, she released him and carefully stood. Her attention was drawn to the weight that had just alighted onto her shoulder. A warm, smooth head brushed against her neck. Her complexion returned to normal and a smile graced her lips before her mind was able to process the facts through the haze of familiarity.

"Renth?! What are you doing here?" her suddenly hardened gaze swiveled from face to face until her blood red eyes locked onto a pair of blue sunglasses.

"Before we get into it..." sighed Jaxom in a dejected monotone. "I suggest that you and I move to another room so that they can continue with their reunion."

Seeing her nod, Jaxom turned and left the kitchen. Tonks followed, Renth still nuzzling into her neck. They walked across the hall and into the sitting room, where Jax locked the door and sat in one of the plush easy chairs. Tonks stared standing before the fireplace, staring at the depressed man in front of her.

"Go ahead..." Jaxom sighed, bracing himself for the inevitable lashing.

"I want you stand up and take off those fucking glasses right now."

Jaxom complied instantly, standing and slipping the dark blue lenses from his nose. The black eyes gazed, unblinkingly at her, waiting for the next demand.

"Swear to me that you will answer truthfully."

"I swear."

Sighing deeply, she looked at her feet for a few moments, idly stroking Renth's neck. Her hair shifted to a deep, sorrowful blue as she raised her watery eyes to lock onto his suspiciously misty gaze.

"What were you going to say that night?"

"I was trying to ask if I could see the real you. I'll admit that, after our...activities...my mind was a bit hazy. 'Else I would have thought the question through a bit more. I just wanted to see the woman I loved for her true self."

Tonks gazed into the solid black pupils, searching for the truth. She erupted into motion so fast that poor Renth was left hovering for a split second before he plummeted to the hearth rug with an undignified skwak. The two humans' lips all but fused as limbs entangled and bodies toppled. This was not a passionate kiss. Nor was it tender. It was somewhere in between, where their shared love pooled within their connected hearts. No sensuous or desperate caresses were needed. Every pent up emotion was released in the form of subtle glow. Breath was not necessary, the magic of their reunion revitalizing their very cells.

Renth, tired of the silence, flew over to the pair and landed rather hard on Tonks' rump. This got their attention and they slowly separated. Serene expressions were plastered on their faces as they regained their footing.

"Talk later?" asked Jaxom.

"Talk later."

Entering the kitchen, they reunited couple was graced with many a confused glance. They ignored the looks for the moment as Dumbledore, who had just flooed back in, called every one present to the table.

"Now..." he began, steepling his hands. "I do believe that a few explanations are needed."

"Yeah! I've got something that needs a bloody explanation." declared Ron Weasley, ignoring his mother's chiding of the choice of words. "What the hell were you doing kissing Hermy like that?"

"Ron. Do not call me 'Hermy'!"

"Wait a minute, Hermy."

Hermione was in the process of pulling her wand when Harry spoke up.

"Ron. I believe that you were told nor to use that name. As for the kiss, that is a discussion for later. Right, Headmaster?"

"Yes, indeed. Though I am sorely upset that I missed that." the old wizard replied, eyes twinkling. "Now, Mr. Trantic..."

"Headmaster. I do believe that we've moved past that. Call me Jaxom or Jax...please."

"Very well then...Jax...I assume that you are the reason that one of our number we believed lost is sitting at the table."

"Dumbledore. I don't think that the children have to hear this." declared Molly Weasley as she began to shoo them out.

"Actually Molly, I believe that I am Harry's guardian. Not that he needs one."

The red-headed woman glared at the revived man. "They are still too young."

"I'm not leaving." declared Harry, surprising all of them. "You were here before. I have as much of a stake, if not more than, **you**, Mrs Weasley. I'm sorry if you don't like it, but...and this is the utmost respect intended...too bad."

"And I am going to stay with Harry." added Hermione. "Besides, I'm of age and, at the risk of sounding childish, **you** are not **my** mother."

The silence was deafening as Molly blustered, her ears growing the trademark Weasley red.

"I'm not leaving either, mum." stated Ron, still glaring at Harry.

"Neither am I." added Ginny. That sealed it.

"Oh **yes** you are! You two are still my own, and you will leave this kitchen...NOW!"

Jaxom, having watched the proceedings with a bemused expression, leaned over to the ginger-haired man beside him.

"Aren't you going to say something, sir?"

"Are you taking the piss? There's not a bloody chance in hell that I'll get into **that**."

Grumbling angrily, the youngest Weasley children stomped out of the kitchen. Molly glared once more at Harry and Hermione, neither of which giving an inch, before she huffed and went about making tea an attempt to calm down.

"Now that that is settled, I believe that we were asking about Sirius?" asked Jaxom, trying to break the tension.

"Yes. How is it that he is alive? I saw him fall through the veil after that bitch Bellatrix stunned him." asked Harry.

"Simple, really. Does everyone remember the deal that I had going with death." seeing the the affirmative nods, he continued. "Well...I'd heard of Mr Black's death. I managed to convince death to revive him, seeing as how he'd fall through that damn veil, and not by any earthly means."

"I see..." was all the headmaster said.

"But why?" asked Hermione. "You didn't even **know** Harry or any of us. Why would you make a deal like that?"

"Like it or not, Miss Granger, we are connected. Both of us were tasked with Voldemort's destruction. The main difference is, not to be insulting Harry, **I** can actually do it." Jaxom quickly raised his hands in a placating gesture as he saw the slightly angry looks on the teens' faces. "Again. I'm not trying to insult you, Harry. You gotta remember that I've been training for years. Given enough time, I have no doubt that you'd have no problem."

"Well, I do believe that we should table this rather...enlightening meeting for the time being. Mr Tran...Jaxom, do you have a place to sleep?"

"Nah...I usually sleep wherever I end up."

"Can you not afford a room somewhere?" asked Kingsley Shacklebolt.

"Oh, yeah. I just don't spend the money. During my training, I lost the dependence for the 'comforts of home'. I can sleep anywhere."

"That won't work." declared Sirius. "We've got plenty of room here. Why don't you take one of those?"

"He'll be in my room." stated Tonks, drawing many strange looks and Molly Weasley's enraged glare.

"No! I will not have it!" the Weasley Matriarch shouted.

"Is there something I should know, little cousin?" asked Sirius, ignoring the building rant for the moment.

"Not really." replied the young auror with an uncaring shrug of her shoulders.

"Very well, but you remember your silencing charms, young lady."

"NO! There are children in this house."

"Which, I believe, is what warranted the 'silencing charm' statement." replied Jaxom. "Besides...do you honestly think that the teens in this house are **that** naive?"

"Watch you tone, young man, or I'll EEK!" her threat was left hanging as Renth swooped at her from Tonks' shoulder, where he'd been sitting to watch the meeting. The fire lizard playfully nipped at the red hair before circling back to 'his' humans.

"Control that creature!" bellowed the irate mother.

"Don't talk to **me**. Renth has a mind of his own. You got a problem, take it up with him. Besides, if he had meant you harm...you would have been harmed. That was just his way of telling **you** to watch the threats. He's **very** possessive of his 'pet' human as he likes to call me."

"Albus! You can't really mean to allow this!"

"Alas, Molly, it is not my house. It is...hmm. Who exactly owns the house now?"

"Raggie told me that Gringotts accepts Lord Black's resurrection. Which means that all willed monies and properties have been returned to your vault and holdings, Sirius, unless you deem it otherwise. Of course, to change that requires a trip to the bank. Speaking of which, I owe the goblin a sundae. Anyone care to join us?"

"Me." said Harry, Hermione, Tonks, Arthur, and Dumbledore simultaneously.

"What?! Albus! You can't honestly be allowing Harry to travel to Diagon Alley for ice cream with You-know-who and his death eaters are running around."

"I believe that, with Mr Trantic and myself along, we will all be well protected should any unpleasantness occur. Shall we?"

Nodding, the group rose from the kitchen table and walked out. Unable to resist a final jibe, Jaxom leaned down to Molly's ear on his way out.

"Did you ever get the feeling that you don't have as much pull as you thought?" and, with a final wink at her beet-red complexion, he exited the room.


End file.
